The one about The Gates and Big Knockers or Something for Vixanne to Read Because She's Bored

Today, I went to see The Gates in Central Park with my friend Teacher2be. For those who have been living under a rock, The Gates 1979-2005 is a public art installation that winds its way over 23 miles of Manhattan's Central Park. The installation consists of 7500 saffron colored gates that are about 16 feet high, pieces of drapery hangs down about seven feet from each gate. It was created at a cost of around 20 million dollars by a pair of artists named Christo and Jean Claude.

So, we went. We walked through part of it. I didn't get it. No, wait, I take that back. I don't think there was anything to get. Teacher2be thought it was a waste of time and money, particularly with the sorry state of our economy and the seriousness of world events. I'm not sure I agree. What The Gates has done is brought a city together and that is is no easy feat. As a friend of Synge's posted on her blog, this is the first time in recent memory that residents of this area and visitors to our beautiful city have come en masse to see something that wasn't a huge hole that contained the smoldering remains of thousands. I appreciate and respect the amount of time it took to construct The Gates. It certainly is impressive. But what I really loved about it and what I keep thinking about is that millions of people will have come to walk under these weird things in the middle of winter and contemplate what it means and how it was done and perhaps, for an afternoon or an hour, laugh and smile and stare and think and, just maybe, forget about the sorry state of our economy and the seriousness of world events. For me, that is the real achievement of The Gates 1979-2005.

Then, my companion and I went searching for somewhere to lunch. Everything around Central Park was crowded so we walked towards midtown and decided to eat at Hooters. Hooters you ask? Yes, Hooters. Now, I must confess, I have never been to Hooters. Big surprise! I've never had the desire to eat at Hooters. But, I was starving and really need to pee, so off to Hooters we went. Let me just say this. The bathrooms at Hooters are absolutely disgusting. People were there with small children. Our waitress was very kind and informed us that she was wearing a water bra. The shorts that the waitresses have to wear show lots of ass. Our waitress said the money there wasn't that great and the New Yorkers really don't like Hooters. The food wasn't awful. It was sort of like eating at Kings Dominion. It's outrageously expensive. Teacher2be and I took a picture with our waitress which I think I may blow up and hang over my desk. Hmmm...maybe I'll have my birthday party there!

The one about the ex (Happy Days?)

Last night Synge invited me to see a production of Samuel Beckett's Happy Days. If you want to feel really stupid, go see a Beckett play and then wait for someone to ask you what it was about. Fortunately, I had read the play and studied it a little in college so I knew what was going on and felt that its ideas dealing with ritual and memory were extremely relevant to the times we're living in. Still, Beckett isn't my favorite.

But this isn't the point of my post.

As I was standing outside waiting for Synge, I saw my friend K sitting in the lobby. So, I opened the door to the theatre to say hello to him and the first person I see is my ex. I'd like to call my ex, Asswipe. Though that name implies some deep hostility, which I really don't have, I like the word and I think that's what he is. So, I open the door and see Asswipe and instinctually, shut the door and say to myself, "Oh fuck". You see, Asswipe and I were together for about 4 years, we lived together for a time and by the time the relationship ended, things had gotten pretty bad. We've been broken up for about six years and though we live in the same neighborhood, we rarely see each other. Before last night, I had not seen Asswipe for about a year.

So, I go in and start talking to K and his friend S and Synge finally arrives. As we walk to our seats, I see that we are sitting right in front of Asswipe and his date. So when I get to my seat, I turn around and lean toward Asswipe and say, "Excuse me." No reaction. No answer. So I repeat myself and at this point, the date taps Asswipe and indicates someone is speaking to him. He looks up, I extend my hand and say "How are you?" I then introduce him to Synge. Asswipe pauses, then introduces me to his date.

The play started. When it was over Asswipe left without even saying anything to me. No goodbye. Nothing. He just darted out of the theatre.

I'm not sure why this bothered me so much. I guess, it's just that I'm a decent person and he's not and though I know that behavior is a reflection on him, I feel like it says something about me. There's long history there and I can't deny that or pretend it doesn't exist. Regardless, if I see someone who I know, I'm going to be decent and mature and it bugs the shit out of me when that isn't reciprocated. Asswipe was my first love and I always thought that I would hold a special place in my heart for him. But when I saw him last night, I realized that that wasn't true. Maybe it's because time and distance have provided clarity. Maybe it's because knowing and then not knowing someone wreaks havoc on the frailty of the human heart. Maybe it's because memory is not as powerful or forgiving as I thought.

But I didn't let him ruin my night and Synge and I had a fab time. Currently, I am nursing a hangover from a terrible mixture of Riesling, Apple Martini, and Abosulut Mandarin and Tonic. Not mixed together, but in rapid succession. Must take aspirin now. Happy Days indeed!